The video presents Teen Health Connection’s mission to empower adolescents (ages 11‑22) through a comprehensive, whole‑person approach that combines medical care, mental‑health services, prevention, and education. It opens with a testimonial from Tisha, a teen who lost both parents and struggled with trust and trauma, describing how the organization’s therapy helped her become resilient, attend college, and work. Clinicians Betsy Thompson and Dr. Dixon explain the breadth of services: routine health screenings (diabetes, blood pressure), the region’s only family‑based outpatient eating‑disorder program, contraceptive counseling, healthy‑relationships and mentoring (GEMS), substance‑abuse prevention, and parenting classes. The video shares impact statistics—over 6,300 comprehensive visits in the past year, half‑a‑million teens facing mental illness, 21.7% contraception use, 1 in 4 asthma prevalence, 32% of high‑schoolers feeling hopeless, 15% planning suicide, and 747 participants in parenting workshops—underscoring the organization’s community reach and outcomes. The overall tone is hopeful and persuasive, emphasizing that Teen Health Connection saves lives by providing accessible, integrated care and supportive relationships.
Chapters
When you empower teenagers with the basics, health and safety, you set them up for success. That's what we do here at Teen Health Connection for thousands of adolescents every year. But perhaps it's most impactful if you hear it from them, to see how we truly save lives.
I lost my mom when I was 7, and I lost my dad when I was 14. I had a very hard childhood. It made me not trust people. When I was younger and was growing up, I had a wall that I would build up, and you could try to get through my wall and you would fail epically. You would terribly fail. Besides your social workers and the people they put you in contact with and the other kids that you come in contact with in the foster care system, you don't really have anyone else.
Anyone else but Team Health Connection, which provides medical and mental health care, prevention, and education services for young people aged 11 to 22. She began therapy with Betsy Thompson.
With Tisha, when she came in, um, she and I talked one of the very first times, um, about the word resilient and kind of what that means and what that means for kids and kids her age. There's no better definition of resiliency than Tisha.
Resilient. Tisha started college at CPCC, started a part-time job as a receptionist.
She has a big personality.
She brings a lot Each year, Teen Health Connection helps hundreds of adolescents like Tisha with the treat-the-whole-person approach. It's a one-stop shop. You can get everything taken care of, not just come in for a shot, but you can be checked for diabetes, you can be checked for high blood pressure.
Approximately half a million teens struggle with mental illness.
At Teen Health Connection, we are the only eating disorder treatment center in the region that does family-based outpatient treatment involving a medical provider, an in-house therapist, and a dietitian with expertise in eating disorders, and that's why we're so successful.
Only 21.7% of Charlotte-Mecklenburg students use contraception.
At Teen Health Connection, we are making a difference in reducing teen pregnancy. We're doing this by offering contraceptive counseling, a healthy relationships program, and GEMS, our Girls Educated and Motivated for Success mentoring program.
Almost 1 in 4 Mecklenburg County students have been told they have asthma.
Teen Health Connection provided over 6,300 comprehensive healthcare visits last year. We also provide substance abuse prevention programs.
Teen Health Connection works to make families the best they can be. 747 people took Parenting with Love and Logic classes. Make the time for it. It's worth it. Last year, 32% of Mecklenburg County high school students felt so sad and hopeless they stopped doing their normal stuff. 15% made a plan for suicide.
I mean, I'd say by far our patients that suffer from depression or anxiety or have suicidal ideations are patients that stand out the most because you very clearly can see this person is in pain and this person needs help.
You know, our goal is to get every kid we can and help, help polish them and get them to be productive members of society and have a happy, healthy life.
And I think what's so satisfying is to know when they get help and they accept you on the help and, and they blossom. And she has blossomed, and it's wonderful to watch.
I feel like if I wouldn't have came here and said something's wrong with me, or if someone else wouldn't have pointed out that something was wrong with me, I don't know where I would have ended up. Ms. Betsy gave me a chance. Dr. Dixon gave me a chance. If I didn't have Ms. Betsy, I'm not quite sure what I would do. Together, we can empower every adolescent to be healthy, safe, and successful.
